by Jenny Moore
First sentence: “All the best stories and adventures start with a knock on the door.”
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Release date: March 3, 2026
Review copy provided by the publisher.
Content: There are some abandonment issues (but then, it’s a middle grade book), but that’s it. I’d say it’s for the younger end of the Middle Grade readership. It will be in the Middle Grade section (grades 3-5) of the bookstore.

Emba Oak is an orphan who hatched out of an egg, and has scales for arms, which doesn’t make her a very popular person in town. Thankfully, she lives in a cave with her guardian, Winifred (just call her Fred), and her friend and aspiring hero Odolf. So when Fred is kidnapped by a dark wizard who wants Emba’s half-dragon blood, Emba and Odolf set off to try and rescue her. Along the way, they learn a bit about Emba and the man they’re going up against.

So there’s not much to this one, and yet I found it charming. I’m a sucker for books with silly chapter headings (The Nefarious Note of Nastiness, The Barbed Bottom Bite of Bravery) and for silly asides. (There was a whole thing about ire being short for iron, which was quite amusing.) It’s the perfect speed for an 8- or 9-year-old who wants a low-stakes adventure story. And I quite liked it.